After a stunning run through the early rounds of the National Invitation Tournament, CSU Bakersfield will continue to make their presence known when they take on Georgia Tech at Madison Square Garden. The Roadrunners took down Utah in the quarterfinals to reach the big stage.
The Yellow Jackets had the odd benefit of playing at home as a lower seed in the first round, but was able to take down Mississippi on the road last time out. Tipoff of the first semifinal is set for 7:00 PM Eastern time on Tuesday night and the game will be broadcast on ESPN, WatchESPN, and the ESPN app.
No. 8 CSU Bakersfield (25-9, 5-4 ATS)
It's been a pretty good last couple of years for the Roadrunners. They tasted postseason experience with a first round exit against Utah State in the CIT back in 2012. Since then, they were able to reach the NCAA tournament last season with a first round loss to Oklahoma and now they've reached the semifinals in the NIT this season. They're hoping they can do a little more than just enjoy the show.
Dedrick Basile (12.5 ppg) has been on a tear since the WAC tournament. He's averaging 16.8 points in his last five games. His lowest output in the stretch was the most recent win with 14 points. Basile has also recorded four assists in three consecutive contests.
No. 6 Georgia Tech (20-15, 19-11 ATS)
The Yellow Jackets finally had to get the show on the road after defeating Indiana and Belmont at home in the early rounds. The Hoosiers decided to defer hosting an Nit Tournament at home and the Bruins were a 7 seed in that part of the bracket. Georgia Tech was able to topple Ole Miss 74-66.
They had a steady lead throughout the contest and never succumbed to the Rebels.
Josh Okogie (16.1 ppg, 5.3 rpg) finished with a team-high 26 points and made 9-of-10 free throws. He's had 24 or more points in the NIT tournament twice and he's tallied up 22 total rebounds. Ben Lammers (14.4 ppg, 9.3 rpg) didn't get another double-double, but he did have 20 points on a stunning 9-for-11 shooting and had eight blocks.
Georgia Tech is favored by two points and the total O/U is set at 123.5 points. Winner will take on either UCF or TCU in the championship on Thursday night.
